Sep 27 Rodrigo Etcheto

Rodrigo Etcheto is a contemporary fine art photographer based in Olympia, Washington. A native of the Pacific Northwest, Rodrigo studied mathematics before discovering his love for philosophy and photography. His work evokes a moody and contemplative atmosphere heavily influenced by the lush natural beauty of his environment which he further accentuates with careful black and white compositions. Preferring to photograph primarily during storms, heavy mist and the movement of water features prominently in his photographs.

What originally started as as long meditative hikes in the rain-forests and coast of Washington state soon turned into a realization of the communicative potential of photography. Etcheto takes much of his inspiration from the ancient Greco-Roman Stoic and Epicurean philosophers who emphasized the study of nature as a guide to learning how to live properly. His photography is an attempt to illuminate Stoic and Epicurean philosophical concepts through evocative and compelling imagery.

Calling his work "a contemplation of the true nature of things" he uses landscapes both big and small to illuminate the flow of time and "the conscious nature of all matter and the inseparability of all things." According to Etcheto all of reality is one single living process with no borders or true separation between things. His prominent use of mist and flowing water symbolizes the way in which all matter "flows" and all objects interpenetrate at the most fundamental level.

"Everything is intertwined and nothing exists separately from anything else. Nothing stands still, everything changes continuously. Everything is imbued with mind, everything is alive, everything flows into everything else. All of reality can be seen in the largest landscape or the smallest fragment because everything is fundamentally the same." says Etcheto.